Castaways On A Foreign Planet
by Captain Risu
Summary: Ochako thought she had settled into her job as a mercenary. Katsuki thought there was only one reason to fly. Together they thought they knew their place in this war. But all it took to question everything was find each other again. [Space Pilots AU]
1. Landing

Ochako resisted the urge to puke.

Her stomach still couldn't handle returning from stasis to full function after Light Road travel. She swallowed the bile. Tapping her fingers around the controllers, she waited until the wave of nausea passed. Outside of her Orca's windscreen, a vast asteroid field spread around the reddish-green planet like an impregnable wall. Ochako noticed little sparks of light glinting between the huge space rocks seconds before a shrill noise echoed through the intercom.

"Welcome, Fighter 2-7-3," The unemotional, computer-like voice said. It used to give Ochako the chills but the feeling had died down over time. "Are you in position?"

"Yeah," she said. "What's the plan?"

"Eliminate all targets."

Even if Ochako had never met the person talking to her face to face, she could swear they always smiled when they gave orders like this. It was a gut feeling she couldn't shake no matter how hard she tried.

"Roger that."

Her spaceship glided between the suspended space rocks, looking for a secluded spot. Head-on attacks weren't Ochako's style. She preferred ambushing the unlucky fellows who would cross her path. When the field covered the spaceship from every side, she halted the engine and leaned back in her seat.

The hunt had just begun.

* * *

"Where are you?!" Kaminari cried out.

The Marlins swarmed around Katsuki like a school of hungry piranhas. His shields were keeping him safe for now as he flew through the asteroid field.

"Don't know. Can't see a thing with those fuckers on my tail."

"I'm barely getting your signal, dude. You have to get back here!"

Katsuki took a sharp turn around a big asteroid. Some of the Marlins crashed on it. He grinned despite anger burning hot in his chest. How these douches had lured him so deep into the asteroid field still escaped his understanding. The Peregrine's radar was going bananas the closer he got to the planet. Katsuki couldn't pinpoint where the fuck he was or how many enemies were out there. Such a classic move from the Alliance to set the game on their own terms. It pissed him off to no end.

"Bakugou!" Kaminari shouted through heavy static.

"Quit yapping, Drooly! I'll be there in a few."

He just had to make them lose him first.

Katsuki turned right, heading straight for where the concentration of the field was thickest. The Marlins followed; their iridescent wings shining under the light of the closest star. Two of them were orbiting the planet, which was twice the size of Earth as much Katsuki could tell. He had seen simulations of the Union's first home-planet, but never the actual thing. It was several light years away from this war to be concerned with it.

A blast ricocheted on his right wing, pulling Katsuki back to the fight. His shields were down. The Peregrine flew over and under asteroids, his pursuers always a step behind. Katsuki clenched his teeth as he avoided laser shot after laser shot. Ahead, two space rocks were on a collision course with each other. Katsuki zoomed between them but the smaller ships didn't follow. The other side appeared quiet. He slowed down the engines just a click, trying to catch his breath. His radar continued showing gibberish. The ship tilted left due to a strong pull from the planet's direction.

 _Damn the Alliance and its fucking ambushes,_ Katsuki thought, hardening his hold around the controls.

The intercom was dead. If someone decided to strike, this was the perfect opportunity. A sense of foreboding dropped on Katsuki like a bucket of ice-cold water. He spotted the irregular shadows on the nearby asteroids seconds before the other spaceship attacked.

* * *

Ochako ignored the feeling of blood rushing to her head. The Orca flew towards the Peregrine like a killer whale rising to catch an unsuspecting bird flying too close to the sea's surface. The pilot of this 'bird' dodged just in time. The Orca's bottom scrapped the other ship's hull. Ochako turned her spaceship around, activating her guns; their barrels pointing at the Peregrine.

The onslaught started with the flick of a switch. Ochako heard and felt nothing more than a low rumble under her feet as the shots were fired. This distance made things less personal. It was just a job, and all she had to do for this to count was destroy the ship. With the signal gone, the Alliance thought they had one less pilot to worry about. But these pilots could survive for an hour in outer space and the Union never left soldiers behind. Ochako always counted on that fact. Killing former comrades was a line she would never cross; no matter how much was the payment.

Something glinted outside. Instead of avoiding her firing shots, the Peregrine flew _towards_ the Orca.

 _Are they insane?_ She thought, horrified.

Her hands danced animated over the controls. The asteroids were packed closely together and the navigator was out of commission. It'd be hard to maneuver with her bigger ship. But she wasn't going to fall victim to a suicidal pilot. Not when she hadn't reached her goal yet.

Pulling at the controls, Ochako forced the Orca to retreat. Bullets ricocheted against the golden surface of the Peregrine as it filled her entire windscreen. She tried to dodge. Her body lurched forward from an impact. Lists of data started overflowing her side screen, indicating that half of the ship had been destroyed. The oxygen levels dropped rapidly. Ochako didn't want to leave the ship. It had served herlike the best of comrades. But with a heavy heart and out of breath, she activated the emergency protocol. The pilot's seat tilted intohorizontal position. Ochako pressed her arms on her sides as the seat dropped under the cockpit. Fluorescent bulbs flickered alive, illuminating the walls surrounding her with a purple light. The protective glass slid into place and the escape pod was launched into the void.

* * *

Katsuki's sole objective had been to scare off the other pilot so they'd crash. He hadn't expected getting caught in the explosion or the Orca's remains to clog his engine. Without a way to battle the pull, the Peregrine started plummeting to the planet. The alarm screeched. Every light bulb inside the cockpit blinked red. Katsuki's fingers around the controls were going numb. But the controls didn't budge.

Blue, so bright it hurt his eyes, replaced the darkness of space as he passed through the stratosphere. The cockpit was overheating and his spacesuit clung on his body like second skin. Pressure glued Katsuki to his seat. The wings had bent in front of him as if the ship was a real bird free falling. He had to open them. Katsuki steeled his feet against the front of the cockpit and pulled. The spaceship twisted like a spindle. When he faced the ground below, Katsuki pressed the buttons on his controls. The wings unfolded like a real falcon's followed by a loud groan. The ship started leaning more to the right. Despite his attempts to fix this, the Peregrine continued to balance like a seesaw in the air.

For an instant, he looked up from the control panel. Some sort of red area spread over the horizon. Katsuki darted past its border without problems, but he kept losing altitude. The ship dropped under the plates beneath him, revealing them to be trees. Branches and trunks pounded on the hull like it was raining stones. Something struck the ship from below and Katsuki's head crashed on the control panel. It left him in a daze, the rows of trees before him blurring the more he stared at them. The view cleared and the ship nose-dived. Metal screeched as the 'beak' dug a line into the ground. Vibrations shook the cockpit like an earthquake until the stern settled down with a thud several meters later. Dust covered the windscreen, harsh light obscuring the view outside. His helmet's filters picked up a foul smell but Katsuki's body felt too heavy to move. A monotonous tune ringed in his ears. Black spots danced in front of his eyes. They covered his entire vision, and he was falling all over again.

Stars twinkled at the sky above when Katsuki woke up. He lay on his back, something soft supporting his head. The stench of smoke filled the air along with sounds of burning wood softly crumbling. Heat washed over him from the left. He turned his head. Someone had kneeled next to a small fire. It spurted flaming specks when the other person threw one more log inside, illuminating briefly their exposed arms and their bulky metallic boots.

 _Anti-gravity boots,_ Katsuki's tired brain concluded. Thieves and mercenaries were fond of these; a crowd he was better off dead than get caught mingling with it.

Whomever that person was, they hadn't noticed Katsuki was awake yet. It gave him the advantage of a surprise attack. He only needed a weapon. At an arm's length lay a belt like a dormant snake, the handle of a gun peeking from one of the pouches. Katsuki dragged the belt silently towards him. The Alliance's open palm insignia adorned the clasp. Propping himself on his elbow, he pointed the gun at the enemy's head. His entire body was shaking from the effort, but Katsuki clenched his teeth and cocked the safety.

The stranger turned abruptly. It was a woman. After the initial shock, her dark eyes zeroed on his face; her chest rising and falling in controlled breaths. Strands of hair from her side bangs clung on her round face like vines. Producing a knife out of nowhere in her hand, she raised it to defend.

A weird feeling rushed through Katsuki's chest, and for a moment he thought he'd pass out again. But he didn't break eye contact. It wasn't just her appearance. The way she was ready to strike without the slightest hesitation brought something from the depths of his mind; the memory of a girl who didn't back out from any challenge, and who had almost killed him once already.

"Uraraka?"

She furrowed her brows for a moment before recognition flashed in her eyes too. "Bakugou?"

He steadied the hand holding the gun. "Just my luck. Of all the assholes in the universe, it had to be _you_."

"Glad to see you too," she mumbled.

"So, you're making deals with those Alliance dicks now? What an upgrade."

"Oh, really? How many people _you_ had to threaten to make it into the fleet?"

Katsuki gritted his teeth. "For your information, I landed this spot with my skills alone. Which is more than you can ever hope to land. Say, what's the score now? I bet it's at least ten ships you've crashed so far."

"You're one to talk." Uraraka scoffed. "Did you forget how you tried to ram into me just a few hours ago?"

"That was an evasive maneuver. Did _you_ forget how you crash-landed a Sparrow right into of the Academy's freaking entrance?!"

"I had it under control! It barely reached the front steps anyway."

Katsuki still had a hard time believing this. No one amongst the crowd had noticed the spaceship emitted a trail of smoke until it started falling. Trained pilots or not, they all scattered like frightened children. The Sparrow's turbines raised every blade of grass and stone in its vicinity as the ship skidded on the courtyard. When the terrible whine stopped and the dust cloud cleared, Katsuki had found the wing a breath away from his neck. He backtracked; glaring daggers at the cockpit as the Sparrow's pilot unfastened their seatbelts. After they had scrambled down from the ship, he approached them to demand an apology. But Katsuki had never expected Uraraka's defiant stare when she took off her helmet. His heart, already beating wildly from the near-death experience, skipped a beat. The effect only lasted a moment because she melted into a mess of apologies right after.

The present Uraraka sighed. "Can we forget about this for now? You shouldn't be moving. Your wounds haven't healed yet."

Despite every joint of his body protesting in the process, Katsuki managed to stand. His head felt woozy, but his grip on the gun remained steady.

"I'm fine," he said.

Uraraka carefully stood up, keeping her hands visible. "You busted your head hard. The control panel of your ship had a decent dent on it." She paused. Her eyes flickered to the gun for a second, seemingly contemplating over her next words. "From what I managed to see in the smoke."

"Smoke?"

"Fortunately, the cooling system put the fire under control before anything exploded."

"Exploded?!"

Uraraka pointed somewhere behind him. Katsuki looked over his shoulder. His spacecraft lay like the carcass of a sea creature washed-up on an Earth's shore. The flames barely cast a light on it, but the charred front of the 'beak' was visible.

Katsuki glared back at her, rage beating in his veins. " _My ship._ "

"What about _mine_?" After thrusting her knife back to her boot, Uraraka placed her fists on her waist. "The remains are still floating up there."

"Not my fault you can't fly straight to save your life. No wonder they kicked you out."

She gasped. "I saved you and that's all you have to say?!"

"It's your fault I was about to die in the first place. That doesn't make us even."

"Ugh… You're impossible!" Uraraka marched past him and scooped up the thing Katsuki's head had been resting. Flapping her jacket like freshly washed laundry, she put it on and stomped back to the fire.

"What do you think you're doing?" Katsuki asked.

" _Leaving._ " Uraraka picked up a box from the ground. "I've had enough. Find someone else to blame for your shortcomings."

"Don't go playing the victim," he said. "Traitor."

"You don't know anything," she said. Her eyes were rimmed with tears when she looked up again.

The sight unnerved him, but his expression didn't falter. "I know enough to not wanna see your face ever again."

"Fine! Rot in your misery for all I care."

"Don't threaten me, you third-rate pilot!"

Uraraka held her head high, not bothering to give him another reply. She walked away until the darkness around them swallowed her form.

The minutes came and passed, but she didn't come back. All the rage and adrenaline Katsuki felt evaporated from his body, leaving behind a hollow husk that ached everywhere. He holstered the gun.

The waning moon rose from behind a rock complex on his right, shedding light into the hollow he had landed. Lanky trees grew out of the harsh ground behind the Peregrine, which was revealed in all of its destroyed glory. Scratches and bents marred the ship's golden surface; some of the hull's guiding panels were gone, exposing the mechanism underneath. The right wing was tilted in a weird angle too. Katsuki climbed on the 'beak'. His muscles screamed in protest, but he balanced on the smooth surface without fail. Inside the broken windscreen, the cockpit was a mess of melted polymer. Sparks flew when Katsuki probed the control panel with his foot.

 _It could be worse,_ he thought.

The main engine was located in the middle of the ship, so it should have been out of harm's way. If it was still operational, at least he would have a slightly bigger chance of getting off this planet. But a closer inspection could wait.

Exhaustion dropped on his shoulders like a heavy blanket. Katsuki grabbed one of the windscreen's exposed bars, ready to slide down. But he caught sight of his reflection on the remaining glass. A rectangle shape was shimmering on his forehead. He leaned closer and poked the edges of it. Pain stung him like millions of needles.

 _"You busted your head hard."_

Apparently, Uraraka had patched up his wounds along with getting him out of the ship. And what Katsuki had done in return? Called her names, demeaned her and stole her gun. He didn't like owning people, especially someone who had seen him vulnerable like this. Still, he didn't know where all this anger had come from. Was it because she was with the Alliance or because she had disappeared without even a goodbye? Words had always come out wrong when Uraraka was involved even in their Academy days. Whenever she was around, Katsuki would get this restless energy he didn't know how to handle. As if she lightened up a fuse inside him and if he didn't release it in some way, he would explode.

He dropped his hand. Next to the fire, his cracked helmet stood glinting like a lonely star.

* * *

 **A/N: It's already the ninth in my timezone so I went ahead and posted this. This was written back in July but with everything that happened RL wise since then and the launch of _The Better Hero_ , I procrastinated into publishing it. But hey, it's the Kacchako Bittersweet Week and I'm going to upload the two chapters I've written so far of this Space Pilots AU for it. This chapter is for the theme of _Fall._**

 **On a kinda unrelated note, t** **he scientist part of my brain is always sabotaging me whenever I write soft sci-fi. For example, the moment the Peregrine opens its jammed wings as an actual bird would probably be impossible to pull off by any real spacecraft. Still, it looked cool in my mind's eye and wrote it down either way. XD**


	2. Survival Guide No1

The ledge broke under Ochako's boots as she jumped from one rock formation to another.

" _Arrogant_ ," she hissed.

The wind whipped at her face and rustled her bangs. " _Selfish_."

Her boots hummed as they activated and pushed her off the ground. Conflicting emotions had tied themselves into a knot inside her chest. She couldn't grasp how someone could be so _ungrateful_ and _rude_ to the person who had saved his hide from certain death.

" _Jerk!_ " Ochako reached the plateau with one last jump.

As if she had wanted to drag his unconscious body—which had been heavier due to the higher gravity of this planet—out of that burning cockpit. She should have left him in there and spared herself from this grief. But she didn't because her consciousness wouldn't leave her alone if someone died on her watch. It baffled her though, how she hadn't recognized Bakugou when she took off his helmet. Maybe because he hadn't had the otherwise permanently carved scowl on his face. He had appeared almost peaceful… until he woke up.

Pain shot through her chest as if her lungs stopped functioning. She hiccupped. No one besides her teachers knew why Ochako had left the Academy. Her grades had been decent, especially in their flying lessons. The incident with the Sparrow happened because of engine malfunction—forcing her to perform an impromptu landing. Thanks to her accurate calculations no one got hurt except Bakugou's pride. He started antagonizing her in all of their training sessions from that day forward. It had been surprising since he had ignored Ochako's existence during the whole semester. But as the challenges came and went, she found herself focusing harder than before, and giving her all wholeheartedly. After a while, Bakugou started lingering a bit longer after sessions. His eyes followed her whenever they were occupying the same space, although he seemed to think she wasn't looking. Ochako had even dared to hope there was something more to this than merely their growing rivalry. But she hadn't had the chance to find out for sure because she left.

 _I'm not gonna cry over this_ , she thought, wiping the tears from her eyes. _It's not worth it._

Up ahead, secluded between two rock pillars and illuminated by the light of the moon, stood her escape pod. Ochako climbed inside and sealed it shut. After returning the first aid kit back to its niche, she laid down on her seat. The bulletproof glass did little to protect her from the cold nesting inside her chest. Hugging her knees and with a clouded mind, she drifted to sleep.

* * *

For the next couple days, Ochako would crawl to the edge of the plateau and observe Bakugou's camp. Some of the controls still worked because the Peregrine had returned into a horizontal position. Under her jacket's protection from the scorching heat, she saw him working on different parts of the ship but not making any significant progress. Back then, she had been too preoccupied with his wounds to notice the true state of the spacecraft. But considering the windscreen was in shambles, the ship couldn't fly out of here even _with_ a functional engine.

When Ochako returned to the escape pod that night, she let her gaze wander on its surface. The rough landing had left minor dents here and there but she couldn't use it to get out of there anyway. Being considered a last resort, the pod didn't have any controls to drive. One only hoped for others to find them if they used it. Bad luck had it for the planet to pull in the pod instead of letting it float amongst the asteroid field.

Ochako snuggled in the seat, stretching her legs on top of the console. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the black surface of a screen. It was a digital frame previously adorning the Peregrine's control panel. Ochako had grabbed it without much thought. However, after a closer examination, she was surprised to find it contained a video of familiar faces from the Academy. Kirishima—another pilot trainee, his personality vibrant as his wild red hair—and Kaminari—a radio operator spending more time in the spacecraft docks than the communications room—where seen dragging Bakugou inside the camera's scope. Bakugou managed to shake them off but Sero—the mechanic that always got roped into the other two's shenanigans—grabbed him by the collar of his uniform. Whatever he said made Bakugou stop resisting and he reluctantly stood in the middle. The video ended with all of them posing for the camera, the body of a spaceship and part of the docks visible in the background.

Bakugou had never struck Ochako as the sentimental type. Considering what she remembered from back then, it had probably been Kirishima's idea. But the video brought a smile to her face nonetheless; reminding her of peaceful and simpler times, when all she had to worry about was not fail her classes.

Ochako didn't ponder often about her decision to become a mercenary. She had done it with a clear mind and a set heart. But with nothing to distract her, she had mulled over it a lot in the past few days. Everything happened so her parents can have a more comfortable life. They had insisted she followed her dream to be a pilot, but their already dire situation became worse because of the war. Graduation stopped being Ochako's goal soon after.

Pulling at the chain around her neck, she let the disk-shaped locket fall on her palm. Purple lines glowed in an elaborate pattern on its surface and a recorded holo-message of her parents materialized.

"Whatever path ya chose, remember that Papa and Mama won't stop loving ya," her dad said, hugging his wife close. "Yer a strong girl, Ochako. All we want is ya to be happy."

"Always follow your heart, dear. It'll never lead you astray," her mother added.

The hologram flickered for a moment longer before disappearing back inside the locket. Ochako returned it beneath her turtleneck. It was hard to follow her heart because it told her Bakugou had people waiting for him to return home too. But it also told her she ought to wait until he realized his own hopelessness. Then, hopefully, he would ask for her help.

His scornful tone from their last conversation replayed in her head. Ochako covered her face, letting an angry whine. It was beyond the realm of wishful thinking for Bakugou to even remember she was still around, more so ask for her help. They had been stuck together on this planet for a week now, and he hadn't shown any signs of recognizing her presence. Ochako could wait. This pod wasn't as confined as the other places she had stayed. But she was tired of this suffocating gravity already. If he didn't want to make the first move, she would.

* * *

When the twin suns passed their highest point the following day, Ochako climbed on the boulder she had been using to overlook Bakugou's camp. It rose six meters high above the ground. She had calibrated her boots accordingly, but the prospect of this jump sent her heart into a pounding frenzy.

 _This is your only chance,_ she repeated like a mantra.

With a deep breath, Ochako hugged the digital frame and walked over the edge. Gravity pulled at her legs like invisible vines right away. The system activated after a meter of free falling. She continued her descend as if she was walking down a staircase in midair. Her knees throbbed from the pressure, but she endured it until she landed. The ventilators on her soles raised a small dust cloud around her ankles.

Up ahead, Bakugou was hammering the surface of the right wing again. The clanging sounds became louder as Ochako approached, but his back remained turned even when she reached the left wing.

"So… how's it going?" she asked.

Bakugou stopped mid-blow, and a shiver ran its course on his shoulders. After a couple of heartbeats in silence, he resumed his work.

Ochako sighed and circled around the ship. Holding the digital frame behind her back, she inspected the exhaust. The metal constituting it had bent slightly upwards, looking like the frown face of a tragedy mask.

"Your thrusters are busted. Hard to fix but not impossible." Ochako peeked from behind the tail. " _With the right parts,_ " she chimed.

Bakugou finally turned with the familiar scowl on his face. Grease and machine oil were covering almost every inch of visible skin. He had unzipped the upper part of his spacesuit, revealing the black tank top he wore underneath. Ochako pretended not to notice as she approached the damaged wing. Her fingers traced over the initials G-0 on the hull which scorched a bit under her fingertips. She crouched down to take a look under the wing. Cables were tangling from the missing plates of the underside, and a large crack spread along what would be considered the wrist of a real bird's wing.

"What the fuck do you want?" Bakugou asked. His voice was a lot coarser than last time, as if unused.

Ochako ignored the shudders on her spine and with a tap of her shoes, jumped in front of him. Before he could protest, she presented him the digital frame.

"I came to return this."

He blinked confused and took it from her hands. His expression didn't change when the video started playing.

"It'd be a shame if it got lost in the fire. So… I salvaged it," Ochako said. "It seemed like something precious."

Bakugou put the frame aside on his toolbox and crossed his toned arms. "Don't waste my fucking time," he said. "What's the _real_ reason?"

"This was _one_ of them," Ochako insisted and waved a hand at the ship. "You can't fix this on your own. Even if you somehow manage to get it flying, you'll never get off this planet without functioning wings. They'll shatter before you cross the stratosphere."

"Are you blind, Round Face? This is what—"

"What about your windscreen? If not the cold, you'll die from the pressure. Face it. You have neither the team nor the parts to do this right." She offered her hand. "Let's make a deal. My pod is in good condition. I can give you the parts you need."

Bakugou narrowed his eyes in disbelief. "All right…"

"But!" Ochako lifted her pinky finger. "You have to promise that you'll take me along when you leave."

"What? Are you five or something?"

"It's either that or you won't see even a glint of those parts. Your choice."

His chest expanded as Bakugou took an angry breath, his nostrils flaring. The lion had been cornered but Ochako wouldn't back down no matter how much he decided to growl. Their stare off was interrupted by a different kind of sound though.

The loud rumble of an empty stomach.

Bakugou looked away. Red bloomed on his cheeks, brighter than the sunburns already in place. "Can't make clear decisions right now," he said after the awkward pause. "Wait until I get something to eat."

There was barely anything left of his provisions, and he wouldn't accept if Ochako offered hers. He'd have to hunt. But marching hungry in an unknown territory was too dangerous. She knew that all too well, having to spend several days without eating between missions.

"I could get you something," she said and added quickly because of his murderous glare. "Blab all you want about your endurance training, but you've been working non-stop." She pointed at the forest line behind her back. "You'll just draw unwanted attention if you march in there like this. I'm better rested so I'll be done in no time."

"How do I know you won't poison me, take my ship and leave?"

"You never listen, do you? I can't fix the ship on my own either. And…" Ochako clenched her fists, her nails digging painfully into the flesh of her palms. "Someone has to pilot it."

Understanding crossed over Bakugou's features. He clenched his jaw, staring at the space between them like it burned. "Go," he said through his teeth. "We'll continue over dinner or whatever."

Ochako nodded with a forced small smile and jumped back to the ground. Before she could take another step though, she heard shuffling above.

"Hey!" Bakugou stood at the edge of the wing. But the frown was softer, his eyebrows just a smudge less angled. "Don't get killed," he ordered.

"Yes, sir!" Ochako replied with a mock salute.

Her smile grew larger when he couldn't see her face anymore. Maybe the spark back in the Academy hadn't been only her imagination.

* * *

Beyond the forest's brow, the scorched earth turned into ochre-colored grass. Mahogany brown trunks climbed high enough to obscure the suns with their wide foliage. They resembled lily pads sprouting from the bottom of a red lake. Her surroundings carried the faint aroma of strawberries too. It reminded Ochako of her mother. She used to cultivate some on the porch, right outside their door. But the golden glow her mother's lean figure basked under was always cold inside her memories.

Birds with rich plumage passed overhead, startling Ochako out of her daydreaming. Their long tails left colorful trails behind like they were light-painting. Armadillo-like critters rustled the blades of grass on her right. They scurried away as fast as their tiny feet could carry them; wobbling like drunk elderly. Seeing other living creatures was a blessing after the past week's desolation. But she had come here to hunt. The critters' rough grey armor appeared tough like a crab's but it wouldn't hold a candle against her carbon-enhanced knife.

Ochako followed them deeper into the forest. Droplets were forming on her clothes like dew drops as the temperature got cooler. Without her realizing, the grass had reached her waist when the critters disappeared.

She stopped.

Chills crawled along her spine like slithering snakes. It was too quiet. She pulled out her knife and closed both hands around the handle. Listening patiently to the familiar—and maybe not so familiar—sounds of the forest, Ochako took calculated steps forward. She couldn't pinpoint what was amiss. This sensation strained her nerves to their breaking point until stalks of grass broke with a loud crunch from her left. Something leaped out of there and Ochako dived forward. After a barrel roll, she jumped back to her feet and turned around. There was only an empty spot in the vegetation before her. She scanned the perimeter without turning her back to it when something blue shot out of the void. It swooshed above her shoulder as she dodged. The scenery trembled like the waters of a pond, painting the silhouette of a four-legged creature. While returning to the creature's wedge-shaped snout, the blue forked tongue left behind a trail of translucent saliva.

Ochako bolted.

Her heart thumped hard against her chest. She slalomed between the trees. The heavy steps of the beast chasing her pounded on the ground like sledgehammers. Her breathing was labored. She felt like she was running through a swamp. Yet, she couldn't stop. The creature was too big to deal with just a knife. She needed time to think; somewhere to take a breather and regroup her thoughts.

The trees around her opened up into a glade. On its other side, there was a tree with a bigger trunk than the rest but without lower branches like them too. Ochako turned left and made a wide arc inside the clearing. The beast—with its big awkward body—stumbled and rolled over. It gave her enough time to re-activate her boots. Pocketing the knife, Ochako dashed full speed ahead. Just as the beast recovered and growled, showing its pointy teeth, she jumped. The ventilators hummed on her first step midair. She didn't drop the pace, hopping from one imaginary solid spot in the air to the next like an experienced dancer. The beast tried to reach her, its tongue missing her right foot for centimeters. Ochako's stomach leaped to her throat and she forced her next jump to be higher. Her hands got ahold of the nearest tree branch when gravity returned with full force. She dangled from it, her shoulders screaming in protest. Hitting her ankles together ignited the boosters on her heels, and she made a 360° turn around the branch before leaping onto the next one. With the combined effort of her boosters and a couple of acrobatics, Ochako managed to perch closer to the main foliage. Below her, the beast trashed its tail and jumped, but she was too high to reach. As if disappointed, the beast continued pacing back and forth at the root of the tree.

Ochako went over her options. She could try passing above the creature but the next tree was at least two meters away. Her boots weren't made for long-distance running and they were already pushed at their limits. The beast was so fast too. There was no way to outrun it once she reached the ground. For a moment she wondered if Bakugou would come looking for her if she didn't return soon. It was highly unlikely. He wouldn't put himself in danger by going so deep into the forest. There were other ways to find food and he would eventually locate the pod, without or without her help. All she had tried to do with this venture was win his trust.

With nothing else to do, Ochako decided to wait for the beast to leave on its own. Certainly, it wouldn't take long and she had all the time in the world.

* * *

 **A/N: I have officially beat my fear of posting the second chapter! It sounds so irrational when I say it aloud but I was always worried if the next chapter will leave up to the first, especially if it had been well received. . That means I can slowly start working on the rest of my multi-chaps and whatever comes. Interest is so fickle on the internet. It shouldn't weight down my creativity and productivity.**

 **This chapter is for the Kacchako Bittersweet Week's theme of _Confrontation_. I have one more chapter planned for the week and by the looks of it, this story will end around chapter five (maybe six, if chapter four gets too long). XD**


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